


bound by sorrow

by michelle_does



Category: Romeo & Juliet - Takarazuka Revue, Romeo And Juliet - All Media Types
Genre: Blood and Injury, Death, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 09:07:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29648997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/michelle_does/pseuds/michelle_does
Summary: post canon/au where if benvolio saved juliettw: blood, suicidal references
Relationships: Juliet Capulet/Romeo Montague
Kudos: 5





	bound by sorrow

The days and streets had been so full of chaos. Juliet wasn’t sure when it would get better at this rate, but she hoped it would be soon. She looked off of her balcony and into the night, thinking of the boy she’d met that night. Romeo… a name that kept him just out of reach. But she didn’t care, she’d do anything for a boy as sweet as him.

“Juliet?”

She looked down from the balcony to see someone she didn’t quite recognize. No, it wasn’t the one from the party. Or was he? He looked vaguely familiar.

“Juliet, you’ve got to get up.” He said without expression, staring directly into her eyes.

“What man has stumbled upon this place?” she asked, unsure of herself. This felt wrong. She was so sure it would be the other boy here and not whoever this was.

“Juliet, come on,” he said it from the ground but he sounded as if he was directly beside her. Juliet shook her head in confusion, maybe he was just an illusion.

“Good morning,” Benvolio was standing above her, Juliet had rolled herself to the ground in her sleep. He looked concerned, if also a bit annoyed.

“Morning,” Juliet mumbled in reply. She got up with what dignity she could and placed her sheets back on the bed.

“You’re having those dreams again you know,” Benvolio said as he walked to gather some things, “the ones where you think of him.” He returned with a change of clothes and handed them to Juliet. She begrudgingly accepted them and went to change. _The dreams_ , she thought, _the ones where I can be with Romeo again_.

“Beautiful,” Benvolio said earnestly, “you look lovely, now let’s go.” He grabbed a coat and ushered her out of the room. Her own personal bodyguard or babysitter depending on how one saw it. It had been this way for the past year and Juliet was sure he wouldn’t be letting up anytime soon.

They walked in an awkward silence down the road. It’s not like they weren’t friendly but it’s hard to accept being friends with someone under these circumstances. Especially someone who had devoted themselves to taking care of you with their every waking moment. Every now and then they could share a quick joke, but nothing more than what you’d share with a distant acquaintance. They’d both lost someone, but that was where the similarities ended. And there was a small part of Juliet that would always resent him a bit.

The gravesite wasn’t anything extravagant, as a city full of bodies runs out of room at some point. But Benvolio knew exactly where to go, Juliet was sure he’d been here at least a dozen times since. Standing in front of the headstone now, for the first time, Juliet felt the six feet of dirt weighing down on her as well. She could see her reflection in the headstone and it became all too real what had, and hadn’t, happened. It was supposed to be both of them. And instead here she was standing above the ground for the first time in a year. With her babysitter beside her to prevent her from trying to get into that grave again. The world turned into a blur and her cheeks felt hot as Juliet began to cry.

“I know,” Benvolio put a comforting hand on her shoulder. Juliet turned to look and her tears quickly turned to anger. She could all too quickly feel the dagger in her again. Looking at Benvolio’s saddened expression here was a reminder of the boy she never wanted to visit her, the one who visited her at what should have been the end of her life.

“It’s your fault,” Juliet spit the words out at him, “you’re the reason I’m here. You’re why I have to keep living like this.” Their eyes met and she could see the venom of her words hit his heart. He thought he was helping a year ago and he thought he was helping now, but the truth was that Juliet wished he’d never been there at all. She pushed him away from her and headed back down the road, hoping he wouldn’t follow.

*~*~*~*~*

The cover of night hid Juliet’s steps as she ran down the road. She was sure where she was going was just a little further from here. Finally she arrived and opened the door. Taking one last breath she entered the room, prepared to share her vows with her true love. Standing inside was Friar Laurence and a boy dressed in blue. But he didn’t look quite right, this wasn’t Romeo. 

“Benvolio?” she felt so confused. Suddenly she felt the warmth draining from her face. Juliet looked down and could see she was bleeding. Looking back up she fell to the ground in exhaustion. The boy ran to her, trying to treat the wound. She tried to say anything at all but before she could speak the world went black.

When Juliet awoke Benvolio was beside her, concerned. The look on his face told her he had been watching her most of the night. She couldn’t remember getting back or falling asleep. She looked down at her arms which were scratched and bruised, not remembering how this had happened either.

“You’re running in your sleep,” Benvolio said in nearly a whisper, “I have to bring you back to bed or else you just… keep going.” He stared at the wall while he spoke. These status updates kept happening. What was Juliet to do with this information? It’s not like she could control what she was doing in her sleep.

“You look like you haven’t slept at all,” she replied, “maybe you should think about that.” She was worried what would happen if Benvolio, the one who was supposed to be in charge here, suddenly started cracking as well. She stood and went to gather her own change of clothes as a way to prove that, even if just right now, she’d be okay by herself.

“If I take a nap, you can’t leave this room,” he said sternly, “you have to swear it.” He looked more serious than he ever had. Juliet may still have had her issues with Benvolio, but she did care for him. She promised that she would stay put while he rested. And almost instantly, he was asleep.

Benvolio looked so peaceful as he slept, like he hadn’t really slept in some time. She was happy to see him not look stressed for once, even if only in this rare moment. Juliet sat beside him and watched as his breathing slowed, wondering if he was haunted by the same nightmares she was. She was so focused on his rhythmic breathing that she hadn’t even noticed when she fell asleep herself.

*~*~*~*~*

The crowd had been growing louder at the excitement of a fight. All eyes were on Romeo, Mercutio, Benvolio, and Tybalt as they dueled in the square. Things were going fairly well for now and Benvolio was feeling confident in the skills of his friends.

“I am hurt!” the words cut through the air like knives. Turning in an instant Benvolio could see Juliet in the crowd, bleeding from a stab wound.

“It’s just a scratch,” her mouth was moving but Mercutio’s voice was all Benvolio could hear. And in the very same instant she fell to the ground, the blood pooling around her.

Shocked at the sight, Benvolio began to realize what was happening. He tried to shake himself awake, fearful of what might be happening on the other side. He tried screaming for Juliet, for help, for anything but none of the words would escape his throat. Exhausted from trying, he collapsed beside her, staining his blue clothes in her blood.

“Juliet!” he nearly screamed once he was awake. Quickly he looked around the room for her, only to realize she had been napping beside her. She began to open her eyes and he grabbed her, holding her in his arms. The two had never been close, far from it in fact, but she was all that he had left. The last connection to Romeo, the last bit of his best friend he could remember. And he wasn’t going to let that go anytime soon.

“What are you doing? Let me go!” she yelped.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he backed away but continued facing her, “I need to apologize. Well, I’ll never apologize for saving you. But I want to apologize for not being as warm to you as I could be. Everything just happened so quickly and I -”

“I know,” she said shortly, “and I might never fully forgive you. But I understand.”

“Can we try to move forward?”

“I think we can start,” she said earnestly. Benvolio didn’t know how much he believed or trusted her. But he knew that at some point, someday maybe he could.

“Why don’t we start with your favorite memory of Romeo?” Benvolio asked. Juliet stared back at him for a moment, she looked different than he’d ever seen her before. There was a twinkle in her eye she hadn’t had until now. She sat up taller and took a deep breath. Benvolio was happy to see this out of her, to see something that wasn’t a never ending sorrow.

“Well, it all started at that party…” 


End file.
